Forever
by KStar
Summary: Ino tried to tell herself she didn't love him, but her heart was breaking as he told her goodbye.


Title: **Forever  
**Author: KStar  
Pairing: Ino/Sasuke  
Theme: #14, radio-cassette player  
Disclaimer: I do not own "Naruto."

A/N: Sasuke's kind of OOC because, frankly, it is darn near impossible to write an in-character Sasuke/Ino fic since it would never happen. Also, I think Sasuke would be a bit of nut job after spending so much time with Orochimaru; I mean he wasn't exactly sane to begin with. Therefore, please bear with me on this fic and Sasuke's strange behavior. I promise the next one will be better.

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"Good evening, Sasuke-kun," Ino Yamanaka murmured as she entered the room. The ANBU guards locked the door behind her with a resounding click, causing the kunoichi to wince. It wasn't as if a petty lock and a couple of ANBU guards could really hold Konoha's most powerful ninja captive.

Her charge did not reply. Hesitantly, Ino approached the small table in the room and set down her bag. She reached in and pulled out a tape-recorder, placing it beside the bag. Her finger hovered over the buttons a moment before slowly pressing play. The wheels began to turn and a small red light lit as the small machine started to record the session, even though neither teenager began to speak. Her hands plunged back into the bag as she searched for her notepad and a writing utensil; the rustling noise was far too loud in the silent room. Her blue eyes focused on her task, refusing to look at the Uchiha.

"Sasuke-kun?" she questioned softly and stared hard at a spot on the table before glancing up. Sasuke was silent, shadows obscuring part of his face. He stared out the window with spinning red eyes, refusing to acknowledge the blonde's presence. Curled on the window ledge with one leg hanging off and draped in blacks and reds, the young man had a closed off, sinister look about him. In his lap, Ino realized with a start, coiled a thick black snake; its yellow eyes watched her unblinkingly and its tongue flickered in and out as Sasuke stroked its head in an almost loving manner.

"Sasuke-kun? Did you summon that…that _thing_?" her voice was a hoarse whisper and Ino cursed herself for her fear. She should have known Sasuke had the ability to summon snakes-after all, she had read his file-, but it did not stop from sending a shiver down her spine. It was just another thing Tsunade-sama could use to make the Uchiha look like the next Orochimaru.

The snake unwound itself and slithered from his master's lap. Ino glared at the creature repulsively as it approached her. It maneuvered into an s-position and it hissed, "Foooliissssh little girlllll. How dare yyyyyooouuu inssssult me!" Its fangs glistened menancingly.

"That's enough, Shi-san," a stiff, rough voice called. Sasuke did not turn her eyes from the window nor did he change his position, but he continued in that authoritative voice that sounded far too much like Orochimaru for Ino's liking. "I release you. Leave her alone and go."

The snake did not look happy, but it bowed its head in reverence to his master before shifting those awful yellow eyes back to Ino and flicking its forked tongue at her once more. Then it disappeared back to wherever summoned creatures went.

Ino let out the breath she had been holding. She fiddled with her pen a moment, hoping Sasuke would say something more, but the Uchiha seemed to be lost in his own world. She took a seat at the table and silently reviewed the questions on her sheet; they were the same questions Ino had asked her captive for the past nine days. Sighing softly, she mentally prepared herself for what was to come. The past nine days Sasuke had refused to answer any of her questions, thereby seemingly incriminating himself all the more. Tsunade-sama was getting restless, and she had already disliked the teenage avenger to begin with; Ino knew it was but a matter of time before the Hokage would order her former classmate's execution.

"Sasuke-kun?" she called out politely. The boy did not respond. "Sasuke-kun, I have to ask you some questions, and I must force you to answer them…by any means necessary." It was the same thing she had told him the last nine days, and Sasuke merely continued to look out the window. As one of Konoha's merciless interrogators, it was Ino's job to extract the truth from her charges, even if it came down to torture. Ino was new to the job, and it was the first time on her own; she had been under Ibiki's careful eye up until this point, and it made the blonde kunoichi wonder why she was given this of all cases as her first solo one. She had thought that they would not put a novice as Sasuke Uchiha's chief interrogator. He was an S-class criminal and a dangerous missing-nin, after all.

"I don't care," muttered Sasuke quietly. Ino had used every torture device in the book. Most of it had been mental, but Sasuke's mental defenses must have been trained-no doubt by Orochimaru and Kabuto-for a moment like this. Ino knew for a fact that some of the jutsus Sasuke used to protect himself were forbidden and no genin was taught anything like that in the Hidden Leaf Village. The physical wounds had yet to be treated; Sasuke had refused medical care and seemed indifferent to the fact they could get infected. Ino had discovered that Sakura had visited the Uchiha earlier in the week and healed what wounds he would let her.

Ino glanced at the turning wheels of the tape recorder before schooling her features into a stern glare and running through her list. As usual, Sasuke remained silent. Ino did not understand why her former crush would not speak; she knew he had plenty of incriminating evidence against the dead snake sennin. Anything he said could be used to help him out. Naruto and Sakura, as Tsunade-sama's two favorite ninja, were pushing for Sasuke's acquittal. If Sasuke would just cooperate then maybe he would not have to suffer. After ten days, it would be Ino's say, as chief interrogator, whether or not Sasuke Uchiha was innocent of his crimes. She could prolong his life by saying he had important information he refused to give, but even if it was the truth, Ino had no evidence to support her claim. She was running out of time.

Slowly, Ino stood and crossed over to window ledge where Sasuke sat. She sank down across from him and stared out the window quietly for a moment. Her blonde bangs fell in front of her cerulean eyes as she gazed into the perfect blue sky. "You could be out there you know. You could be with Naruto and Sakura again like nothing ever happened, like you never left the Hidden Leaf. All you have to do is cooperate with me and answer my questions."

Sasuke did not look at her; his red Sharingan eyes gazed unblinkingly out the window. Ino felt her stomach churning and attempted to swallow the lump in her throat. The next time she spoke, her voice was the barest of whispers. "Sasuke-kun, why did you return to Konoha?" He came back willingly, allowed himself to be taken into custody. There was not sane reason as to why.

"Sakura came to visit yesterday," Sasuke's voice was harsh from disuse.

Ino blinked, surprised by the response. She frowned thoughtfully and said, "I did not see that in the file."

"And so did Naruto," Sasuke continued quietly. "Sakura's different now; she's stronger than she was before. I…She's finally growing up."

"Well, that's because you broke her heart!" Ino snarled scathingly before she remembered she was supposed to open Sasuke up-not piss him off. Nevertheless, she couldn't help but feel the anger boil up as she recalled what Sasuke had done to his teammates, how Sasuke abandoned his teammates.

However, the Sharingan user did not get mad. His voice held a note of something Ino couldn't read as he said, "And Naruto's gotten more powerful, more composed, while at the same time letting the Kyuubi get out of control."

Ino started. She had been told what Naruto was when she became an interrogator, but she hadn't thought Sasuke would know. "You know Naruto is the fox demon?" she exclaimed incredulously. "And you don't care?"

The avenger gave his reflection a sour look. "Of course, I've known. I'm not stupid," he hissed scathingly. "I knew he was the Kyuubi from the moment I met him." He sneered and added, "Why would I care if he has a demon sealed in him? I mean, he's the same annoying moron he's always been. Having the Kyuubi in him doesn't change that."

Sasuke had a point, Ino decided. She was startled at the rare show of compassion by the stoic teenager, and the two lapsed into silence. But there was something else. "You're worried about him," she accused quietly.

The Uchiha pursed is lips and did not answer. When he did finally speak, it was not what the blonde kunoichi expected, "Ino, why do you keep your hair long?"

Once again Ino was surprised, not only at the question but also at the fact he had addressed her by name, something she could never remember him specifically doing. "I-er-I don't know," she responded confused. "Why do you want to know?"

Sasuke closed his eyes and a smile played on his lips. "I remember there was an idiotic rumor running around that I liked girls with long hair. That's why Sakura grew hair out. She's rather gullible."

Ino could not stop the blush from spreading across her cheeks. She knew he was referring to her as well and recalled her childish boast to Sakura all those years ago. Sasuke continued as the smirk turned almost sad, "Then she cut her hair short, and that's the way it's been since…I rather like it short." There was a pause to let that sink in, and Ino knew Sasuke was just saying it to irk her. "But you, Ino-you never changed your hair, not even after I left. You grew it long again despite cutting it at the chuunin exams. Why is that?"

"Maybe I like it long," she snapped, her hand instinctively reaching around her ponytail. It was true that she had originally grew it long to attract Sasuke's attention, but now…now it had become her image, her insignia.

Sasuke's smile was beginning to grate on her nerves. It was similar to that strange ninja Sai's fake grins and appeared as if the Uchiha knew some dark secret she did not. Ino did not like this new Sasuke, this Sasuke Orochimaru had molded into his perfect little pupil. Only…Sasuke had killed Orochimaru, stuck his fist right through the snake bastard's chest, or so Naruto claimed. Who knew what Sasuke was capable of or what was running through that volatile mind of his?

Suddenly, Sasuke's eyes were open and staring right into hers. They were no longer that uncomforting Sharingan red; instead, they were his usual starless obsidian, blank except for some emotion Ino could not discern. When he spoke, his voice was so soft, the blonde kunoichi strained to listen. "Tell me, Ino," he whispered huskily. "Do you love me?"

Ino's eyes narrowed, and she opened her mouth to inform the bastard missing-nin that there was no way in hell she had feelings for him anymore. Yet, she could not make herself form the words. "I was young and stupid back then," she finally replied. "Anything I felt for you was merely a silly, school girl crush. Lust and nothing more."

"That was not the question," Sasuke interrupted, still gazing at her with unreadable eyes.

Ino did not know what to say. Sasuke had caused her friends so much pain, had broken her own heart. He had nearly gotten Neji, Akamaru, and, worst of all, Chouji killed. He had left Sakura unconscious and grief-stricken on a bench just near the Leaf's gates. He had stuck his hand into Naruto's chest with every intention to kill him. And even before all of that, Sasuke had always ignored her, always pushed her away. He loved Sakura and Naruto more than he could ever love anyone else. He always paid attention to them, always was looking out for them. To say that she had no chance with the Uchiha was putting it nicely.

She should have moved on. She should feel nothing but disgust toward him. She should have been supporting Tsunade-sama for her desire to end the Uchiha's life rather than desperately trying to convince Sasuke to save himself. "I should hate you," she murmured quietly. But if she should feel all those negative feelings, then why couldn't she just tell Sasuke that she didn't love him? Why was some part of her heart stopping her from speaking the hateful words she wished to spit at him?

Something crossed Sasuke's face, and he sat back as if he could see into her heart and already knew the forbidden truth. His eyes drifted out to the perfect sky once more. "Ino, you told me I had the power to fix things. That I could make my broken team whole again." He clenched his fists, and for the first time, Ino saw a hint of vulnerability on her charge's face. He looked…sad. "You put far too much faith in me."

"What do you mean, Sasuke-kun?" Ino asked when she finally found her voice.

"Team Seven will never be the same," his voice was monotone and dead. "Sakura will never again be that childish, annoying flirt that hangs onto me like an unwanted appendage. Kakashi-sensei will never again be that cocky perverted jounin who smiled at our immature actions and verbal spars from behind his mask. Naruto will never again be that number one hyperactive knucklehead ninja that always picking fights will me and proclaiming he's going to be the next hokage. And I will never be that brooding avenger who takes his best friends for granted and leaves them in exchange for an empty promise of power."

"Sasuke-kun…" Ino whimpered, tears gathering behind her eyes. She forced them back and swallowed, not wanting to reveal how badly the Uchiha was affecting her. She tried to tell him that he was wrong, that things could go back, but she couldn't lie to him anymore.

Suddenly, Sasuke was scowling at her, and it reminded her of old times, happier times. His hands shot out and gripped her wrists tightly. For a second, Ino's heart welled up in fear, but then Sasuke was speaking again. "It might take awhile, Ino, but one day everyone will be happy again; one day you'll all forget about me and move on with you lives. And Sakura will blossom into Konoha's strongest female ninja and marry Rock Lee and have plenty of children and never think about her once beloved teammate who never returned her affections. And Naruto will find a new best friend and he'll become the Rokudaime and everyone in Konoha will look at him and not see a monster…" Now Sasuke's face was inches within hers, and Ino was shaking, shaking to stop her tears from flowing. "And you, Ino…you will marry someone like Shikamaru or Chouji and you'll inherit your father's flower shop and everyone will know your name throughout Konoha and Sasuke Uchiha will be but a memory of one of your interrogation prisoners."

Ino managed a wavering smile as a nervous laugh gurgled in her throat. "Where'd you come up with that, Sasuke-kun? Don't tell me your Sharingan can see into the future, too?"

"No, Ino," Sasuke replied so serious that it scared Ino. "That's your future. I know. I've seen it, but not with my Sharingan. I know it here." He rested a hand on his heart. "And seen it here." He laid that hand on her heart.

Ino didn't know what to say. This was not the old Sasuke, the broken Sasuke who glared at everyone except his teammates and whose one goal in life was avenging his clan. Nor was this the new Sasuke, the twisted Sasuke who killed ANBU and didn't care and had become a mirror image of the monster he had vowed revenge on. This Sasuke was different and wrong and…and the worst of all because her heart was breaking like it never had before. She had cried when the broken Sasuke had rejected her and screamed when she witnessed the barbarity of the twisted Sasuke, but this Sasuke caused her heart to shatter into a million different pieces, shattered it so that it could never be pieced back together the same way.

And unexpectedly, Sasuke reached forward and closed those final millimeters between their faces. His lips brushed against her own, tentative at first and then erupting in a way Ino had never experienced with anyone before. It was a lover's kiss, beautiful and erotic, but it only made Ino numb inside.

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The rest of the session became a blur, she vaguely recalled packing her blank notes back into her bag and flicking off the red light of the tape recorder. She had walked home without speaking to anyone and avoided her parents.

As she flipped on her bathroom light and gazed dully into her mirror as if in a trance, Ino started at her ragged, ugly appearance. Her fingers itched for her weapons' pouch, and she pulled out a kunai. Untying her ponytail, the blond kunoichi grasped a handful of her golden locks and sliced them with the kunai. She suddenly attacked her hair with ferocity, slashing it into a short, uneven mess. Her vision blurred as she stared at her now ear length tresses, the tears she had kept in all afternoon finally spilling over.

"You liar, Sasuke Uchiha," she moaned, "You stupid, heartless liar."

Ino crawled slowly into bed, leaving the mess of slaughtered hair behind in the bathroom. Her mind kept drifting back to the conversation and the hidden meaning behind all of his words. She pulled the covers up around her head and sobbed until she could barely breathe. She shivered and wailed and clawed at her burning heart for the only man she would ever love. She didn't care that she was supposed to be an unemotional kunoichi, a ninja to strong to cry. She didn't care that Sasuke was a prisoner, and that captors should never have feelings for their prisoners. She didn't care that she wasn't supposed to love him anymore. Tomorrow she could be strong and forget all about her weakness tonight. Tomorrow she could be the perfect little interrogator and turn in her report to the Hokage. Tomorrow …tomorrow Sasuke Uchiha would die by execution in a death he could have avoided if he had never come back to Konoha. Ino buried her face into her pillow and howled in love's heartbroken agony as the tears gushed in rivers down her face.

The wheels of the tape recorder were turning, turning, recording the last conversation between two star-crossed ninja who could never achieve true happiness again. A red light burned forever in the night.

_"Why did you return to Konoha?"  
"…I came back to say goodbye…"_

_"It takes a minute to like someone, and hour to love someone, but to forget someone takes a lifetime…"_  
-Unknown

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